Nearly BGN 17.5 million will be invested under the “Education” programme for the effective functioning of the Mechanism for coverage, inclusion and prevention of children and students dropping out of the education system. This was announced by the Minister of Education and Science Prof. Galin Tsokov at a meeting in the parliament with over 70 teachers and principals from areas with a large concentration of children from vulnerable groups. The discussion was initiated by the Committee on Education and Science of the National Assembly.
Under the “Education” programme, more than BGN 65 million will be invested for adult literacy, it became clear during the meeting. According to the minister, this is also a measure to motivate more families to realize the need for better education and to change the attitude towards school, which will also reflect in their children.
“I also want to thank the more than 13,000 specialists and experts who join the groups under the Mechanism for coverage and inclusion of children in school and preschool education,” said Prof. Tsokov. He shared that a large part of the problems that the teachers present in today’s meeting are the same that have been found during his visits to schools in such areas in recent months. “It is very important that we change the perception of teachers and that they do not feel alone in this daily struggle to keep children in class,” the minister said. According to him, the Ministry of Education and Science is ready to discuss and initiate any changes in the work in order to improve the conditions for specialists and achieve better and more lasting results, but the role of parents and families is extremely important in the whole process.
During the meeting, teachers and principals shared that they often talk to each other, but they are not sure when their voice reaches the institutions and therefore they are hopeful about raising the issue in the National Assembly. According to them, they do not have enough tools to react in severe cases, and the problem with the language preparation of children from vulnerable groups entering the education system continues to be fundamental. According to them, better coordination between institutions and decision-making for regulatory changes, based on the experience and practice of people working in the field, is also needed.
At the beginning of the 2023/2024 academic year, the ratio of covered children and students is 94.16, and the number of children and students returned (after dropping out and newly enrolled) from the coverage teams is 9,905.
People’s representatives Krasimir Valchev, Byunyamin Hasan, Denitsa Sacheva, Irena Anastasova, Mediha Mehmed-Hamza, Iliana Zhekova and others took part in today’s meeting.
